Corticosteroids not effective for treating acute sinusitis

Corticosteroids, frequently prescribed to alleviate acute sinusitis, show no clinical benefit in treating the condition, according to a randomized controlled trial published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).

The common cold is the main cause of acute sinusitis, which is characterized by inflammation of the nasal cavities, blocked nasal passages and sometimes headaches and facial pain. Allergies and bacteria can also cause the condition, which is uncomfortable and difficult to treat. Antibiotics are a common treatment, despite the fact that the cause is often viral and will not respond to antibiotics. Corticosteroids are increasingly being used to alleviate symptoms, although the evidence for efficacy is inconclusive.

To determine the effectiveness of oral corticosteroids on acute rhinosinusitis (sinusitis), researchers from the Netherlands conducted a randomized, double-blind controlled trial involving 174 adults with clinically diagnosed acute rhinosinusitis. Eighty-eight patients were randomized to a group that received 30 mg/d of prednisolone for a week and the remaining 86 received placebo. In the prednisolone group, 55 of 88 patients (62.5%) reported that their facial pain or pressure had resolved by day 7, versus 48 of 86 (55.8%) in the placebo group. Although there was a slight reduction of facial pain in the prednisolone group, the results were neither statistically nor clinically significant. Moreover, other patient-relevant outcomes revealed similar results.

"There is no rationale for the use of corticosteroids in the broad population of patients with clinically diagnosed acute rhinosinusitis," write the authors. "Future studies should focus on identifying subgroups of patients who may benefit from intranasal or systemic corticosteroid treatment."

Patients hospitalized with mild to moderate community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) should not be routinely prescribed prednisolone, a corticosteroid, as it is associated with a recurrence of symptoms after its withdrawal, according ...

Treatment for Bell palsy (a condition involving the facial nerve and characterized by facial paralysis) with the corticosteroid prednisolone within 72 hours appeared to significantly reduce the number of patients with mild ...

Adding an antiviral agent to corticosteroids for treatment of Bell's palsy (a condition characterized by partial facial paralysis) is not associated with improved recovery of facial movement function, according to a meta-analysis ...

Recommended for you

(HealthDay)—For patients with facet joint arthropathy, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has a short-term positive impact, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, ...

Both traditional and HIV-related risk factors can predict the likelihood of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study published this week in PLOS Medicine. In the study, Amanda Mocroft, of University Colleg ...

New research at the University of Michigan offers evidence that a drug being developed to treat osteoporosis may also be useful for treating osteogenesis imperfecta or brittle bone disease, a rare but potentially debilitating ...